Hoyts Website Sucks

From Nick Jenkins
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Hello Hoyts,

Your website badly needs improvement.

Case in point: Can you please update your web site so that it does not lead me to try reserving a seat that is simply not available?

I just went through the full process of trying to reserve a seat for Xmen 3 at La Premiere tonight at Fox Studios, and after here was the process I had to go through:

  • Step 1) Go to hoyts.com.au
  • Step 2) Click La Premiere
  • Step 3) Click Select Fox studios
  • Step 4) Click X men 3
  • Step 5) Click the date
  • Step 6) Click the 8 PM session time
  • Step 7) click buy tickets
  • Step 8) Click "sign in"
  • Step 9) Then enter email address and password
  • Step 10) Click "sign in"
  • Step 11) Then be shown the total price, then click "Next"
  • Step 12) Be told that there are no seats left.
  • Step 13) Click "search again".
  • Steps 14 - 22) Repeat steps 3 to 11 inclusive again, except this time try the "7:15" session.
  • Step 23) Be told that there are no seats left, again.
  • Step 24) Click "search again", again.
  • Steps 25 - 33) Repeat steps 3 to 11 inclusive yet again, except this time try the "9:30" session.
  • Step 34) Be told that there are no seats left, yet again.

So, it took me 34 separate actions to discover that you cannot sell me what I want. I repeat: THIRTY FOUR STEPS.

What a waste of my time, and relevantly, what an terrible website. How many people must just give up, and how many sales must you lose because of this? I'm thinking: Lots.

Why did you not tell me at step 6) that there were no tickets available for the times I wanted? After all, the session times are different for each movie, and each cinema, so you have to store separate session information anyway based on cinema, plus movie, plus day. Why not show something like this for the list of available session times:

  • 12:15pm
  • 1:00pm
  • 2:30pm
  • 3:15pm
  • 4:45pm
  • 7:15pm - SOLD OUT
  • 8:00pm - SOLD OUT
  • 9:30pm - SOLD OUT

That way I would have known immediately that you didn't have what I was looking for, so I could try another night.

And another thing: Why do I have to sign in before I have seen the total, and before you have even checked whether seats are available? In other words, steps 8, 9 and 10 should not happen until after the current steps 11 and 12.

Instead of this happening, my step 35) was this: Give up in disgust, and write open letter to Hoyts, and put it online, as well as mailing it to your customer support.

All the best,
Nick.


Update: People have left similar messages on the talk page, seems other people get annoyed with the Hoyts website too.